A Traditional Art Form Still Practiced In Bengal Finds Its Roots In The Harappan Civilisation

How many of us know that the motifs and designs used in making the Bengali alpana today have their parallel in motifs seen on pots and vases of Mohenjodaro and Harappa? Drawn in freehand style and depicting the hopes and wishes of one and all, the beautiful tradition of alpana has educated and bonded communities for at least 40,000 years now.

Rabi Biswas

Taking its message beyond the boundaries of Bengal is Rabi Biswas (31). For about a decade now, this man from Bengal’s Nadia district is conducting workshops across the country in order to revive its fading glory and make it popular. Having learnt a lot about this art from his grandmother Sumitra Mondal (72), he explains that each alpana is connected to moral stories and broto – a ritual carried out at a specific time of the year to pray for fulfillment of a desire.

“For example, hyachra broto alpana drawn by married women in the family and seeks deliverance from skin diseases. This ritual and alpana is done in the Bengali month of Falgun (February-March in Gregorian calendar) when time is ripe for ailments like pox and measles in Bengal. Thus, all the motifs drawn in the alpana have medicinal properties –bitter gourd and pumpkin flowers, banana trees, herbs, etc, and show how these are connected to sun, earth and the moon,” explains Biswas soon after concluding one of his workshops at Indian Museum, Kolkata, on September 25. Interestingly, alongside students, many women also attend these workshops to get some easy designing tips and tricks.

Rabi Biswas

Done primarily in white, alpana is drawn using the ring finger of the right hand and has a specific set of motifs to be drawn. However, there are no rules about their shape, size, measurements or placement, leaving ample scope for creativity.

While learning how to draw at the workshops, the women find other things the ancient tradition has to offer. Coupled with its ritual, the hyachra broto alpana informs one of how to tackle skin diseases naturally. “Praying the deity for problem-free life is a symbol of having faith. It keeps the society together. Science cannot answer all questions always,” says Biswas, who is pursuing Masters in History of Art at Kala Bhawan, Visva-Bharati University, Shantiniketan.

Each design and motif used in drawing a traditional alpana has a meaning, a purpose to serve. Biswas decodes some of these alpanas for us:

1. Purnipukur broto alpana: Done in the month of Baishakh (April-May), this alpana is drawn by unmarried girls invoking the goddess to keep the lakes and ponds in the community filled with water and keep their soil fertile. It uses supari (betel nuts), paan (betel leaf), etc.

Rabi Biswas

2. Dosh-putul broto: Or, broto of ten children, this alpana depicts 10 dolls holding hands while standing in a circle and reinforces the feeling of harmonious living of a family.

3. Shejuti broto alpana: This alpana involves drawing of 52 motifs that include everyday items such as household utensils and tools used in various professions in a community. Also included are birds, animals and plants among other things. “Even a 5-year-old child draws this alpana. It then becomes an educational tool for the child to know what is what. Otherwise, this alpana represents all the things needed to live a comfortable happy life,” says Biswas of the alpana which is popular in Neranjan Nagar near Mayapur, West Bengal.

4. Lokkhi broto alpana: Drawn to invite the deity of wealth and prosperity, this alpana is perhaps among the most popular ones being practiced today. It uses motifs such as the owl, lotuses, paddy bins, footprints of the deity and climbers. The alpana invokes the goddess to bless the home with wealth and prosperity.

5. Prithibi broto alpana: This alpana worships nature and makes use of motifs like lotus and conch shells. “Unmarried girls do this ritual and alpana, praying for peace on the planet and a good partner for life,” says Biswas.

Rabi Biswas

6. Nabanno broto alpana: Drawn in Ogrohaeon (November-December) this alpana is made near paddy bins to pray for a good harvest and wealth. Conch shells are primarily used in drawing this alpana.

7. Aranyo shashti broto alpana: Also called the Jamai Shashti alpana, this alpana has the motif of a cat and invokes the forest goddess and is drawn in the month of Jaishto (May-June). “The mother-in-law draws this alpana in the kitchen and invites her son-in-law for a meal, wishing his family wealth, a prosperous and healthy life,” says Biswas.

In case one thinks that drawing an alpana is a woman’s domain, Biswas, who has authored a book based on his research on the subject, says that even men used to perform the rituals and draws alpanas about 60 years ago. “It’s just that with time, they withdrew from the field and women took over.”

Rabi Biswas

Traditionally done in the courtyard of mud-houses in villages, alpana is made using rice powder paste on a base of cow dung, water and mud. But since mud-houses have given way to brick and mortar ones, Biswas prepares alpanas on handmade papers processed with cow dung and water. Selling these alpanas at fairs across the country is an important source of livelihood for him alongside the money earned from workshops. His dedicated work in the area has got him attention of organisations like Daricha Foundation and INTACH, which help him get more workshops.

On cemented floors, white clay can be used as an alternative to rice powder paste. But Biswas informs that the much-simpler option of ‘alpana stickers’ have made inroads in villages too, curtailing the practice of drawing by the hand to a significant extent. Further, engagement of women in activities such as watching television for long and making bidis and selling supari has taken them away from alpana.

Rabi Biswas

“Most people do not know that the stickers are only aesthetic designs done on computers. They are bereft of any motifs. It defeats the purpose of the Bengali alpana – bringing together people to draw motifs and observe rituals together and communicate with each other,” says Biswas.